The paper was prepared by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) on behalf of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). The purpose of this scoping paper is to introduce the general concepts of an International Transferable Quotas system and the specific program design issues that need to be considered for its application to the sturgeon population in the Caspian Sea. The Caspian sturgeon species are listed on Appendix II of CITES.